Asians Not Welcome?

[Dawn]

Originally Posted by alan&moyra

I find it almost impossibe to believe that a 17year old coming from the UK has the thinking that there is more racist abuse heer than in the uk.......... utter tosh !!! where i was in the uk (glasgow) there was a massive number of racist attacks physical and verbal on a almost daily basis so for her to not have seen it in the UK she must have been wearing blinkers ......... or lived in a very affluent area.

Thanks for being so tolerant of others opinions guys No, she doesn't have blinkers, she's been exposed to the nitty gritty of life, I've made it my responsibility to make sure. And no, we didn't live in an affluent area, Nottingham actually, in the middle of the old coalfield belt. Most of her friends were council estate kids, Asian, Indian, black, mixed race they all got on together. I worked with wayward kids, drug addicts, probationary young people, abused individuals, the homeless as well as kids with physical disabilities, learning and behavioural difficulties and terminally ill kids in hospices whose days were numbered. They were from all walks of life, every colour, every race. Lauren has seen it all she hasn't been sheltered. And when she tells me what she sees and hears, I take her seriously.

Yes, where we came from there was racial intolerance, addressing this amongst young people was part of my remit, it was a serious problem. If I remember correctly, Nottingham was about the fourth worst city in the UK for gun crime, racially fuelled drive by shootings etc. I'm not saying NZ is anywhere near that bad, Hamilton and Cambridge definately aren't BUT what Lauren means is that within the young people she has mixed with there is an outspoken intolerance of other cultures and it seems acceptable for this to be the case. It generally goes unchallenged and I have also found this to be true. When you do challenge it people are generally confused as to what the problem is. That's a problem

[DizzyF]

Have lived in London for years and it has a hugely diverse culture with little evidence of racism. Think racism in the UK may be down to area and education of the people living there....same for anywhere I think!

[thinkcentre]

I am Asian and have been in NZ for about 6 years now ( here for high school, uni and now working). Therefore, I have been subjected to racist comments in more than one occasion. Most of the times are kids aged 8-12, sometimes right in front of their parents. And what do the parents do? Nothing. Worst case scenario, they laugh.

[Dawn]

Originally Posted by thinkcentre

Most of the times are kids aged 8-12, sometimes right in front of their parents. And what do the parents do? Nothing. Worst case scenario, they laugh.

And that's what I mean and yes, it would have happened in the UK and yes, parents would have laughed as well but this kind of thing is being challenged and the kids are being encouraged to be more tolerant. NZ is a long way behind in this respect.

[keeweegal]

I think a lot depends on where you live & have lived, & your own experiences. I was shocked at the racism I came across in the UK compared to NZ.

Maybe things have changed in NZ since I've been away - I'd hate to think its got worse.